The Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy, Dr. Selesh Bekele held a virtual meeting with his Sudanese counterpart, Professor Yassir Abbas Mohammed on ways of resuming of the trilateral negotiation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

The two ministers along with their respective delegation exchanged views on the procedural aspects of resuming the trilateral negotiations and other key concerns from each country.

Key issues and concerns regarding the outstanding negotiations on the GERD have been also discussed in the virtual meeting.

The two sides further agreed to hold frequent bilateral meetings leading to the trilateral negotiations as soon as possible.

A coronavirus treatment facility set up at the Addis Ababa Millennium Hall has begun accepting patients.

The facility will provide beds for 1,040 coronavirus patients, out of which 40 are ICU beds, said Dr. Ismael Shemsedin, director general at the facility.

According to him, the facility has also amongst others a laboratory, drug store, and rooms for health workers.

The country saw a 310% spike in COVID-19 cases during the past couple of weeks.

The total number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus has reached 1,344 in Ethiopia with,  231 recoveries and 14 deaths so far.

Ethiopia registered the highest rates of the coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in the past couple of weeks.

According to the Ministerial Committee set up to prevent and control the spread of the virus, the rate of new cases climbed by 310% in the past 15 days.

Coordinator of the Committee and Minister of Peace, Muferihat Kamil, said only 286 people tested positive out of the 53, 600 samples taken in the first two months and four days.

However, the rate of new infections surged by 310% to 886 out of the 55, 845 laboratory tests conducted in the past 15 days, she said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia refers with great dismay the incident of 28 May 2020 along the border area between Ethiopia and the Sudan and hereby expresses its deep sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims of both countries.

Ethiopia has today launched two mobile applications that help control coronavirus pandemic in the country.

The mobile applications have been unveiled by Ethiopian Public Health Institute in partnership with Ministry of Health and other stakeholders, it is indicated.

The first mobile application tracks people and alerts them if they have been in close contact with someone infected with coronavirus.

And, the second mobile application is said useful to share out uniform information among medical staff members following COVID 19 patients in same facility.

Users can use the applications (Debbo and COVID 19 Ethiopia) by downloading from Google Play Store and Official Website of Ethiopian Public Health Institute (https://www.ephi.gov.et/), it is learned.

Source: fbc

The House of People’s Representatives (HPR) has begun its 4th special session.

In its meeting, the House is expected to approve the additional budget proposed by the Council of Ministers for this Ethiopian fiscal year.

Moreover, it is also expected to approve the electronic transaction draft bill and refer other bills to pertinent standing committees for further scrutiny.

Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed has extended his congratulations message on the occasion of Ginbot 20 (May 28), which marks the downfall of the Derg regime.

In his message, the Prime Minister said “Ginbot 20 is one of the days that changed the history of modern Ethiopia.”

“Several fighters have sacrificed their precious lives to make Ethiopia democratic, fair and peaceful, to stop injustice and bring equality, multi-national unity, and prosperity,” he said.

“We should remember the day going forward and evaluating the past, not by sticking on Ginbot 20 victories,” he said.

A consultative forum focusing on the role of competing parties for successful completion of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) kicked off today in Addis Ababa.

The forum has been co-organized by the Joint Council of Ethiopian Political Parties and Office of National Council for the Coordination of Public Participation to GERD.

High ranking government officials including Foreign Affairs Minister Gedu Andargachew and the Water, Irrigation, and Energy Minister Engineer Sileshi Bekele are also taking part in the consultative forum.

Chairperson of the Joint Council of Political Parties, Mussa Adem, while opening the meeting, said the forum is mainly intended to bring parties together against national interests despite political disparity.

The role of Political Parties in consolidating support for successful completion of GERD and other national interests has become a core discussion point in the forum.

Progress of diplomatic efforts and negotiations underway among riparian countries to address the dam issue have been also reviewed on the consultative form.

The ministerial committee and COVID-19 advisory taskforce met to discuss the spread and containment efforts of the pandemic.

Chair of the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen, said the spread of the virus is extremely worrying, particularly in the capital Addis Ababa.

Indicating that about 70% of the country’s total confirmed cases are from the capital, he said, all needed precaution measures should be put in place to stem the virus from spreading.

Taking into consideration that the virus is spreading at an alarming rate, the community should prevent the pandemic by washing their hands, keeping physical distance from others, and wearing facemasks, he said.

Cases of the coronavirus in Ethiopia climbed to 655 today, having risen by 73 new cases in the past 24 hours.

Marking Africa Day, Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed has called for strengthened solidarity across the continent.

Africa Day is the annual commemoration of the foundation of the Organisation of African Unity on 25 May 1963.

In a tweet, the Prime Minister said “As we celebrate Africa Day today, let’s strengthen our solidarity for the Africa we want.”

“Our vibrant and diverse continent with many assets is destined for multidimensional prosperity,” he added.